Halina Ward believes that if we take the concept of ‘one world’ thinking, developed by Peter Singer in One World: The ethics of globalisation, our democracies have not responded to the challenges of interconnectedness. While the tools of one world thinking are well developed, such as environmental footprints or impact assessments, they are not used enough.
Halina argues that there is a failure of democracy, with short-term thinking, inability to engage unrepresented interests, deal with trade-offs between the economy, society and the environment; or integrate different governance levels. Suggested solutions include institutional innovations such as the Hungarian Ombudsman for Future Generations, as well as making use of insights from network governance, or local level innovation.
Halina Ward
FDSD, June 2009
